In Teaching You Will Learn
by Daffodils-N-Dragons
Summary: Downton Comprehensive is a moderately sized school that boasts excellent results, respectful pupils & friendly staff. At least, that's what is plastered on their advertisements. Under the guidance of Headmaster Robert Crawley, the school runs as smoothly as possible. A new member of staff, John Bates, marks the start of Downton's descent into drama (T is a safety rating, R&R!)
1. Chapter 1

**Author's notes:** I've had this idea for the longest time. I don't know if it has been done before and apologies if it has! I've seen the phrase 'Downton Comprehensive' elsewhere, but this is a fanfiction will focus on that idea of Downton being a school. It is going to be inaccurate in places obviously, for example, it is very unlikely for so many Crawley family members to work in the same school (I'm comforted by the fact married couples work at my current school though). A fanfiction on this scale has to have a main focus, and that'll be the Anna/Bates storyline!

I'm uploading this to see if there is much interest in more chapters. Other chapters will generally be longer, I'm aiming for 2000 words at least. Reviews would be nice but not necessary, we're all busy bees! I'll be posting information (eventually) on this fic on my DA tumblr sympathy-butters-no-parsnips - including a full list of characters and their roles, and how the school looks/is laid out. Like I said, it all depends on interest. I'll write more anyway, but it might not get published.

Nothing belongs to me, but I wish it did ;) (watch out Fellowes)

* * *

As John Bates made his cautious ascent of the school driveway in his slightly shabby car, he was beginning to wonder if this was all such a good idea. Of course, he'd rather be somewhere new than back in his previous job. It meant a fresh start, and obviously an escape from his ex-wife. However, the prospect of being amongst entirely new people was daunting. His mother was taken ill shortly before his initiation was to take place; luckily for John, the headmaster of Downton Comprehensive was an old friend. He was given access to the school to show him around during the summer, gave him his class timetables and warned him of troublesome students, and troublesome staff.

Still, even with this kind gesture from Robert, John felt uncomfortable. He parked and locked up quickly, walking away from the teacher's car park to a more open area that had the building on one side and the school field on the other. What if he had been given this job out of pity; perhaps he was just a sad case? He clutched his cane tighter suddenly. He could hear his mother's voice in his head, telling him he was being an utter numpty and he needed to pull himself together with her strong Irish enunciation. Robert had given him this job because he was thoroughly qualified. He strode towards reception as fast as his legs could handle with new found confidence, and was surprised how quiet the building was. He shouldn't have been quite so surprised, as it was an hour and a half before school began, but first impressions were everything and an early start would do him no harm on his first day.

Before he pushed his way through the glass doors, he straightened the tie on his navy work suit and ran a hand through his hair. _Come on John; why in heaven are you nervous?_ At the desk located a few metres away from him when he had gotten inside, he noticed a small group of people talking quietly. _The early birds_ , he thought. There was an older woman of about fifty, who was talking to a shorter, plumper woman of the same age. Close beside them were a young man, younger than thirty with jet black hair and a scowl that would frighten off any Year 7. The woman opposite him had a scowl that matched his perfectly, and she was around John's age. It took a moment or two for them to notice him. They all looked perplexed, a few eyes wandering to his cane. The older, taller woman stepped forward.

"Can I help you, sir?" she asked in her Scottish accent, which caught him off guard for a moment.

"I'm John Bates, new head of History" he announced. The woman relaxed completely and offered her hand for a handshake, of which he complied.

"Ah of course. Nice to meet you, Mr Bates. I'm Mrs Hughes, head of English and Key Stage 3. We'll be working closely together" she gave him a kind smile, though she too found her eyes wandering to his cane.

"Oh yes, I've been appointed head of Key Stage 5 as well" he breathed "I swear I didn't forget" he said with a nervous chuckle, earning a laugh from Mrs Hughes and the woman she had been speaking too previously. The declaration he was head of Key Stage 5 made the other man in the room flinch.

"This is Mrs Patmore, she's in complete control of the canteen" she said, directing her attentions to the short woman behind her. John shook her hand politely; he had reverence for kitchen staff. "Miss O'Brien here is deputy head of Maths, and Mr Barrow is head of Geography". The two refused to offer their hands. Instead, John received a half-hearted 'how do you do' from Miss O'Brien and a nod from Mr Barrow. He knew in that moment the two had an attitude and were going to be unpleasant.

Before anyone got a word in edgeways, there was a scuffle at a different pair of doors leading to a corridor. The young woman that shuffled backwards through that door with a tray dotted with mugs made John's already nervous legs go weak momentarily.

The first thing he noticed were the angelic locks of hair cascading over and below her shoulders. Her eyes met his as she turned around; they were the most divine shade of blue. She wore a light blue skirt that hugged her waist and a white blouse that suited her figure impeccably. She glanced across to Mrs Hughes in confusion.

"Anna, this is Mr Bates, the new head of History" she announced. Anna quickly passed her tray to the nearest open set of hands, which were Mrs Patmore's, so that she could offer her hand to him.

"Hi, I'm Miss Smith" she exclaimed with wide smile, "Deputy head of English". As John clasped her significantly smaller hand, he speculated about how hard she must've worked to be deputy at her apparent young age; and he admired her for it.

"I look forward to working with you" he retorted, matching her smile. She held his hand a little longer than she was supposed to and a glint appeared in her eye, which did not go unnoticed by John. They parted and Anna turned her attentions to the mugs on the tray. She picked one up and the older women took theirs.

"Didn't you think to ask us?" Miss O'Brien asked sharply. Mr Barrow chimed in with a deathly glare in Anna's direction.

"I was going to ask you both if you wanted tea earlier, but you were having a cigarette in the car park and one of your private conversations, so I thought it better to not disturb you" Anna exhaled calmly. "I can go fetch you both a cup of tea or coffee now?"

"I'll get my own" Mr Barrow stated in monotonous drawl. "We have to meet in the staff room in half an hour, no point you scurrying off to make one now". Miss O'Brien just mumbled in agreement and Anna, within the safety of her own mind, groaned at their unnecessary hostile natures.

"How about you, Mr Bates, would you like anything?" Anna inquired, once again looking directly into at the new History teacher's eyes. John had been in a bubble of curiosity about the young woman in front of him, and hearing her say his name made his heart quicken its pace. There was something about the way she said it. After having to blink hard to come to his senses, he shook his head.

"I'm quite alright, thank you". Anna wasn't too persuaded, but did not ask again. The group of teachers turned around at the abrupt entrance of an older man. He looked a little flustered.

"Good morning everyone" he called in a low voice. He received a chorus of good morning's back. "Have I missed the tea round?" he said to Anna with a chuckle before facing John. "You must be Mr Bates. Robert mentioned you and I saw your photo from your past school's newspaper articles" he explained. "I'm Charles Carson, head of Maths and Key Stage 4" he noted, shaking John's hand firmly. John had sensed that Mr Carson was an important figure, and his titles had confirmed that. Mrs Hughes peered at her wristwatch.

"We better go to our classrooms before the meeting. Mr Bates, do you remember where your classroom is?" she queried.

"Not really" he admitted, disappointed at himself.

"The History department is upstairs, you're in classroom W20" Mrs Hughes replied, pointing towards the steps. At the mention of the stairs, everyone looked down at his closely held cane.

"Are you going to be able to manage?" Mrs Patmore probed, perhaps a little insensitively airing most of the room's thoughts aloud. Mr Bates' lips curled downwards.

"I'll manage" he replied tried to sound as simple as possible.

"Of course you can" Anna cut in quickly with a smile, having sensed the man's uneasiness. John stared at her in surprise.

"It seems fitting that Thomas could show him to his classroom, Geography is upstairs too" Mr Carson suggested. Thomas begrudgingly shifted from his position of leaning against the reception desk.

"Follow me, Mr Bates" he said in what John assumed to be his usual drawl. John shared a final smile with Anna before beginning his climb up the nearby stairs.

"Well, I can't see that lasting long" Miss O'Brien stated grimly, unaware if John was out of earshot but not caring less if he was.

"Thank you, Miss O'Brien" Mr Carson grumbled, shutting down any further comment from his colleague. The group slowly departed from each other as the reception staff began to make themselves at home again. It was a new year and it meant new changes, not only to the curriculum but to each other, and the way the school ran. Not to mention the staffs' home lives, and how personal matters will manage to seep into the work environment. Everyone had different thoughts buzzing around their heads, but John and Anna were undoubtedly thinking about each other, and neither quite knew why.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's notes:** Thanks to all who have taken interest in this so far! I'm so pleased by the reception of this fic 3 I was excited to continue, which has promoted a second chapter I couldn't wait to upload. The aim for this chapter was to establish Anna and John kind of liked each other from the get-go and to introduce some characters. For a full list of characters and their roles, click here. Enjoy and thanks for reading!

* * *

"I think I've been given one of the nicer classrooms on the corridor, looks quite fresh" John observed as he stood at the back of the classroom, patting a desk gently. It was an attempt to create conversation between himself and the lingering Mr Barrow. The younger man had been staring at his cane, clearly agitated. When he received no reply, John pointed towards his row of storage cupboards. "I assume I can find all my textbooks and exercise books in these?" he asked.

"There's other equipment in there too, whiteboards and rubbers, A3 paper and stationery for those pupils who don't realise that you actually have to write in school" Mr Barrow retorted quickly. Upon hearing of the infamous A3 paper, John made a mental note to get his Year 7 class, who he knew would comply, to make a bunch of posters for his display boards. "If you need anything else, ask one of the history teachers or main reception. They'll tell you how to find something" Mr Barrow added, turning around to leave.

"I'll get the hang of it all" John murmured, more to himself than to the other teacher.

"Yeah, you'll have to" he shot back unkindly, finally leaving the older man to his devices. Mr Barrow made his way swiftly into a conjoining corridor bound for his classroom. Between the two corridors sat the office for the Bursar. His only ally, Miss O'Brien, stepped out of the office.

"On a scale of one to ten, how furious do you think I am that old peg-leg was chosen for head of Key Stage 5, over me?" he growled. The older woman placed a finger to her chin in mock thought.

"3?" she guessed with a false smirk.

"You may joke Sarah, but this is outrageous" he countered with a scowl. She scoffed and made way for the stairs down to the Maths corridor.

"You should've made more effort in the interview, and proved yourself when you had the chance Thomas. You won't make the same mistake when he's buggered off". Miss O'Brien said no more when she saw Mrs Hughes come up the stairs. The older woman knew by the look on their faces they had been talking callously. The pair shared a final look and departed, saying nothing to Mrs Hughes; who just rolled her eyes and entered the office.

* * *

Meanwhile, Anna had been sauntering about her classroom on the other side of the school, laying out fresh exercise books for her first class. She adored her classroom. She always kept flowers on her desk, and her displays on the walls were described by many as the best in the school. It was no surprise her classroom and her company were appreciated by her pupils. She could count the amount of times she had had to shout at a class in the previous year on her fingers. Being so well-liked by pupils meant they were usually guilt-tripped into being well-behaved; if you did not do your homework for Miss Smith, she wouldn't shout, but she'd be extremely disappointed you. She knew this was marginally manipulating her pupils, but part of her was always genuinely let down; especially when she tried so hard to mark work frequently.

Anna picked her timetable up to re-study it. She had one Year 7 class, two Year 9 classes, one Year 11 GCSE class and one A-Level class. She was pleased about having Year 7 and A-Level on there, but the other two not quite as much. Year 9 pupils were a handful, the boys were rambunctious and the girls were hormonal; though both attributes were easily swapped between the sexes. GCSE pupils were the most hectic. Closer to exam time, they'd come in looking down in the mouth and Anna, who hated to see anyone upset, would be stressed out by 20+ miserable teenagers. She hadn't questioned Mrs Hughes on why she wasn't given the Year 13 class she taught for Year 12, but she'd bring it up eventually.

There was a knock on her door and Anna was brought out of the recesses of her own thoughts, putting her timetable down on her desk. It opened and Gwen Dawson, a Biology teacher, poked her head around the door.

"Good morning" Anna called with a soft smile. Gwen had started last year and the pair had become instant friends; they were both hardworking but wanted to get gratification out of their jobs.

"Mornin' Anna!" she called back cheerily, almost skipping into the room.

"Gosh, you're lively" Anna joked. The taller woman ran a hand through her hair and shrugged.

"I've got the first day back buzz! Just you wait; tomorrow I'll have to get Daisy to drag me out of bed". The smaller woman broke into a giggle.

"I'm going to miss getting up a bit later; I'll be begging to wake up natural soon". Anna thought for a moment about how she not only had to get herself up, but her friend Mary, who also worked at the school, out of bed that morning. She chose not to comment on how Mary was Head of Achievement and Attendance…and running late. The two had contradictory personalities, but they had been to university together and had been through some tough times. That was enough to put differences aside.

"Well, William thought it'd be alright to 'wake up natural', so he was putting his tie on the car ride here" Gwen sighed, rolling her eyes playfully. Anna chuckled, and thought it must be fun for Gwen and the two teaching assistants she was friendly with, William and Daisy, to all live together. They must have such a laugh. Though considering how lucky she was to live in a beautiful flat with Mary, maybe having more people around wouldn't be such a fantastic idea. Mary went out on the weekends more than she let on to her parents, which meant Anna could revel in free reign of the flat.

Gwen's eyes darted up, having recalled that there was a new member of staff.

"What was the new head of History and Key Stage 5 like?" she queried. Anna, for some reason, felt the tips of her ears go red. _Why on earth am I embarrassed_ , she thought. She definitely thought him attractive. His suit had hugged his broad but handsome body and his eyes had so much depth, very easy to get lost in them…she hadn't realised that she liked the look of him quite so much to get flustered.

"Seems nice, very polite; his name is John Bates" she explained with a broad smile on her face, of which she controlled quickly. Her reaction made Gwen consider, and further ask the following question.

"Good looking?"

"Double your age!" Anna exclaimed, not that it was going to stop her liking him.

"Like it really matters! Come on, that wasn't a proper answer" Gwen protested. Anna looked away for a moment, trying to stop another wide smile splitting across her face.

"Well…he's tall, brunette, brown eyes, suppose you could say he was han- oh, sod this, you'll see him for yourself in the staff room, Mr Crawley will introduce him". Anna shuffled to the classroom door "We better be on our way". The taller woman huffed and followed Anna out, waiting for her to lock the door. They began dawdling down the corridor; Gwen swung her arms a little.

"This Mr Bates, I think you might fancy him, just a little-"

"I most certainly do not! I've not even had a proper conversation with him!" she snapped with a defensive tone. Gwen knew the truth, just from the way her ears had gone red, but chose to take it no further.

"I was only joking Anna" she mumbled between chuckles. Anna grumbled to herself for a moment, had she made it that obvious? The resounding answer to that was yes.

* * *

People were pouring into the staff room, greeted at the door by the Headmaster, Robert Crawley. He flashed his finest smile and said his best good mornings. He was delighted that everyone seemed just as motivated as him for a new year. A young blonde man in the most well ironed suit Robert had ever laid eyes on approached him.

"Good morning Matthew, looking very smart" Robert commended, giving the man a pat on the shoulder.

"Good morning Sir, thank you. My mother said the very same" he responded with an anxious laugh. This was Matthew's first year at Downton Comprehensive, but he had met all the staff before the summer. He had been called up to be told he had received the job in April, after the other man who was offered it was unfortunately caught up in a boating accident. However, Matthew in no way felt second place. He had been living in Manchester and it was his mother who convinced him to go for the job and they would pack up and leave if he got it. Robert's concern was that he was such a distance away in the first place.

"Don't be nervous ol' chap, everyone likes you" Robert said supportively; though just a moment after he said it, his daughter Mary pushed past Matthew with heavy sigh.

"Not everyone" Matthew amended, eyes trailing after the young woman who had arrived a few minutes before. Robert gave a grumble of concern.

"I assume Mary is just bitter, I'll speak to her after the meeting". It was after he said so that his daughter Edith appeared, carrying a couple of folders and her hair already looking slightly messy from running about.

"Mary, bitter? There's never been a statement so true" she cursed, pushing her way through the doors. Robert rubbed his face with his hands.

"Sibling rivalry?" Matthew pondered aloud.

"You don't know the half of it" Robert sighed. After a few more moments of conversation, Matthew made his way into the room. Robert peered in; it looked like all the staff had arrived, until he heard a familiar sound making its way down the corridor.

"Good morning, Robert" John called and the pair met at the door and shook hands.

"It's a joy to see you here John. Find your way around alright?"

"With a little help, I did indeed" he responded, mustering a smile despite being nervous about facing the rest of the staff.

"I'm pretty certain you're the last, let's head inside". The two men finally entered the packed room. The room smelt of coffee and was quite warm, which may have been comforting if it had not been for John's uneasiness. He noticed a couple of familiar faces. Robert's daughters, although John had not seen them in a long time, were quite easily recognised. Edith was speaking quietly to Mrs Hughes, while Sybil, the youngest of the Crawley sisters was standing beside a man a little older than her in deep conversation. The eldest, Mary, was chatting to a woman whom he had searched for first; Anna.

"Good morning everyone! Before I get onto the formalities and changes you all need to be aware of, I'd like to introduce John Bates". All eyes were on John, including the blue pair he was most curious about.

"Some of you met him this morning, but for those who don't know, he is our new head of History and head of Key Stage 5. John and I knew each other in our younger years. We met in our three year army training course. It is fate that he decided to go into teaching, and I'm so happy to have him".


End file.
